Nicknamed Alexander the Great, Devon Alexander is a former WBC and IBF welterweight champion and one of the best fighters of the past. Devon used his elusive boxer skills to defeat each of the opponents he encountered. His winning streak is a kind of record for the left-handed superstar boxer.
Biography
Devon Alexander was born on February 10, 1987, and grew up on harsh streets in the Hyde Park area in St. Louis, Missouri, where he studied martial arts under the supervision of experienced teacher Kevin Cunningham, a former police officer who began teaching the boxing program to protect little ones. children from trouble. His two older brothers Lamar and Vaughn also enthusiastically engaged in boxing. Alexander is a left-hander who is known for his hand speed and fast, elusive boxing style.
Amateur career
Under the tutelage of Cunningham, Devon Alexander had a successful amateur career, with an impressive record of 300 victories and 40 defeats. During his amateur career, Alexander the Great won the Silver Gloves four times, the PAL national championship three times, the Golden Gloves among juniors, and was also the country's champion at the Olympic Games. In 2003, Alexander won the US national championship in the U-19 and under division, and already in 2004, Alexander the Great won the US national welterweight championship. At the same time, he did not succeed in becoming a U.S. Olympian because his last fight ended in a draw: he was knocked down during Olympic trials, and therefore lost his place in the team at the 2004 Athens Olympics.
Professional career
Devon Alexander began his professional career in May 2004. By the end of 2007, he had thirteen victorious fights and not a single defeat. On January 19, 2008, Alexander managed to win on points of the former WBO federation champion, D. Corley. After this fight, Devon spent four more victorious battles, and then he had the opportunity to win an unoccupied WBC World Championship title.
In early September 2009, Alexander the Great held a duel with a boxer from the UK, Junior Witter. In the interval between the eighth and ninth rounds, the referee first suggested Witter to stop the fight, and after a moment the boxer himself decided to end the duel and did not enter the fight in the ninth round, explaining this later by injuring his elbow. Until the battle was interrupted, Alexander won the battle on points: 80-72, 79-73 and 79-73. The knockdown moment of Witter can be seen below in the photo.
Devon Alexander March 6, 2010 had a fight with IBF world champion Juan Urango. Devon used his outstanding counterattack and effective aggressiveness to defeat the two-time champion. Alexander ended this fight in a spectacular way: he caught Juan with the perfect oncoming uppercut in the eighth round, which sent Urango directly to the knockdown. Urango stood up. But in the eighth round he was caught again by Alexander the Great. This time, Alexander caught Urango with a hook, which again sent him to lie in the ring. The referee stopped the fight because Urango could not recover. Alexander won the technical knockout of the eighth round, which turned out to be the first knockout in Urango's career.
First failures and sunset career
On January 30, 2011, Devon suffered his first failure in a fight with Timothy Bradley and lost the WBC federation belt. The fight ended in the tenth round after both boxers hit their heads. A moment later, the doctor decided that Alexander was not capable of further combat. At that time, Bradley was in the lead: 98-93, 97-93, 96-95. Devon returned to the ring on June 25, 2011, defeating Lucas Mattiss. At the end of February 2012, he defeated Marcos Rene Maidan and became the WBA World Champion.
October 21, 2012 Devon Alexander, after a not-so-impressive, but fair fight, defeated former world champion Randall Bailey on points. The judges decided unanimously in favor of Alexander: 116-110, 115-111, 117-109. The reward for the fight was the world welterweight boxing title.
December 13, 2014 in Las Vegas, Nevada, Devon lost the battle with the Englishman Amir Khan on points: 109-119, 110-118, 108-120. After this battle, Devon's career began to decline - he spent 4 more fights, winning only one.